Foreign banks create inexorable change in sector
The government support of privatizing state-owned banks and the entry of several Gulf-based players have galvanized the banking sector in the past two years. Raising the professional standard of banks…
Challenges and optimism shape the future of the Middle East
Co-chairs of the World Economic Forum agreed that government bureaucracy, education, and the food and energy crises are the main elements that will shape the agenda of the Middle East…
Oil prices drop below $126 a barrel after string of records
VIENNA: Oil prices dropped below $126 a barrel Monday in Asia after punching through to another trading record at the end of last week despite the prospect of an increase…
Iranians-Swiss in gas deal, despite US pressure
TEHRAN: The National Iranian Gas Export Company (NIGEC) signed a long-term agreement with the Swiss-based EGL Group to bring natural gas from Iran to Europe, beginning in 2009. The investment…
We face a common Islamist threat, Netanyahu tells Mubarak
SHARM EL-SHEIKH: Israel and Egypt face the same threat from radical Islam, Israel's right-wing Likud party leader Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday after talks with President Hosni Mubarak."It was a…
Increased police presence stems Egypt-Gaza tunnel activity
CAIRO: With the World Economic Forum on the Middle East underway in Sharm El-Sheikh, the tunnels frequently used to smuggle goods and weapons on the Egypt-Gaza border have been inactive…
Steel prices tower above LE 7,000 a ton
CAIRO: A series of leaps brought steel prices to nearly LE 7,800 per ton over the past few days, with market chatter suggesting they could clamber as high as LE…
FreshlyGround brings African fusion to Cairo
African rhythms took over Al Azhar Park's Geneina Theater last Friday as South African band, FreshlyGround, made their Egypt debut at the Spring Festival 2008. The theater was filled to…